Sodam Lee is a South African contemporary graphic artist, lecturer, and reportage illustrator whose location-based studio practice documents the raw energy and shifting architecture of modern urban centers. Currently alternating between the creative landscapes of Cape Town and Johannesburg, Lee specializes in on-site sketching, using live illustration as a critical lens to examine the built environment.

Her celebrated City of Gold reportage series was born during the historic Urban Sketchers Johannesburg Mini-Symposium, where she meticulously captured the dynamic pulse of the metropolis. Sketching live in neighborhoods like Marshalltown, Fordsburg, and Rosebank, her drawings explore the intricate physical layers of Johannesburg, highlighting the stark juxtaposition of historical architecture against contemporary urban sprawl.

Lee’s unique ability to translate passing moments into permanent ink lines caught the attention of the Bag Factory Artists’ Studios, which awarded her a prestigious artist commission funded by the Department of Sports, Arts, and Culture. During this residency, she immersed herself in the inner-city community, producing intricate documentations of local landmarks like the Hamidia Masjida Mosque and the Oriental Plaza. Represented on prominent contemporary platforms such as Latitudes Online, Lee continues to use her sketchbooks as living archives of South African street culture.